The pathway to the Present........

"Only the present moment is real and available to us.

The peace we desire is not in some distant future,

but it is something we can realize in the present moment."

Thich Naht Hahn, from "Interbeing"

I took the day off from work and spent it with--myself.

I got up early, packed a cloth bag with water, fruit, cheese and crackers and of course my handy dandy camera

and

headed off to one of my favorite hiking places.

It had been a long time,

since I'd been on this trail, alone.

The sun was hot and the ground that was wet and mushy the last time I was there was dusty, cracked and oh so dry.

Leaves had barely started turning colors and

a few had started falling from their branches.

I was alone,

most of the day in the stillness of time.

As soon as my feet hit the trail,

something prayer like,

trance like,

overtook my body

and

I

just moved forward

into and through and as a part of

Divine Creation.

A carpet of leaves of various colors was spread

out

for my entrance

into

my secret sanctuary.

The rhythm of my pace,

cleared my mind.

The past met the present and connected to the future of my next step

and

I suddenly

had the awareness of why

hiking fed my spirit so much.

When traveling down a dusty path,

through lush over hangings of leaves and trees,

through secret tunnels of wild flowers,

and

over dried up river bed,

I became aware

that when on the trail,

the only thing I can think about is

the

present moment

and

where

my foot will hit the trail next....

If I looked too far ahead,

I'd find myself stumbling,

turning to look back caused me to lose my pace,

no way to control what was going to happen,

no need to project with expectations,

alone

in

the

moment of time

was

what I had and I stood amazed

at the beauty of the world around me,

I felt the breeze against my hot sweat skin,

sat and ate the sweet nectar of a peach

with the juice running down my hand and arm

and

I smiled

at amazement

of the little kid I felt

amused at herself.

It was a refreshing, tiring, day

filled

with moments of awe

moments of beauty,

and moments

of

oneness with the world around me

and

I breathed in

and

i was and it was good.

I passed the place

where I sat the first time I ever hiked

and remembered for just a moment,

what the heaviness of my body was like

seventy pounds ago and remembered

how I panted and sat to catch my breath,

barely a half mile into the trail.

I walked past the place

I landed wrong and popped my knee leaving me to hobble my way out with a hiking buddy worried that she

was going to have to carry my big butt out of the woods.

I moved past the place

where I screamed and cursed at God

for the pain I'd felt from the church

and as quickly as I remembered the pain,

I moved past the place

where God met me that day,

in the form of a gentle deer and her baby

and

stared me into grace.

I passed the places where Big Daddy and I walked

an anniversary or two ago

and

over the now dried up stream where

off color daughter and her friend waded.

memories moved on,

past behind,

future ahead.....

and I stood

in the midst of a moment of present being,

breathed in the dusty air,

and

was renewed,

refreshed,

reborn, if you will....

all

because

of

a walk in the wood

on

a pathway of presence.

blessings and hugs on this night!

May you too find a moment

of

presence..

as Eckhart Tolle says,

"the present moment---it is all we have, so make the best of it."